Xin Mao

The tentative title of my thesis is " Ethically rethinking utopia in contemporary world: A Levinasian Perspective".My research insterets basically cover two areas: utopian studies and the philosophy of Jewish French thinker Emmanuel Levinas. Within utopian studies, I am mainly interested in the Marxism tradition, socialism tradition, Frankfurt school, especially the utopian thinking of Ernst Bloch, and the failed utopian movements in human history. I do research on all aspects of Levinas's philosophy, from his ethics, phenomenology, Talmudic writing, to his political thinking. I endevour to correlate Levinas's implied utopian thinking to ethical utopia, pursuing a concrete influence of Levinas's philosophy to the betterment of our society, with emphasis of peace, justice and ethical subjectivity, rather than maximum collective happiness of the individuals in the society. 

2010-now: King's college London, Teology and religious studies department, social ethics

Tentative title of dissertation: Ethical rethining utopia in contemporary world: A Levinasian perspective

2007-2010: Beijing Normal University, school of Philosophy and sociology, western philosophy

2002-2006: Tianjin University of commerce, School of Law, Applied psychology

Scholarship:

2010-2013: Chinese Scholarship Council

2010-2011: Walton scholarship (King's College London)

2010: Headstart scholarship (King's college London)

conferences:

2008: XXII world philosophy congress, Seoul "The understadning of the west by the east--an anthropological perspective on Chinese scholars studying western philosophy"

2011: Taking control, SOAS, London "Ethical rethiniking utopia in contemporary world:from a Levinasian perspective" 

2012: Good life:public, private and personal, Heythrop College, University of London "Good life: public, private and personal: A Levinasian utopia"

2012: How can we be together? International conference on social phenomenology of formation of community and social togetherness, Riga, University of Latvia " The null-site society and E.Levinas's ethical utopia"

2013: Utopia Study Society Annual meeting, New Lanark "Utopian Community in the view of Emmanuel Levinas: An ontological revolt"

Emmanuel Levinas, Utopian studies